S.L.V., also known as Stag’s Leap Vineyard, is the winery’s first vineyard, planted in 1970. The vineyard is home to 35 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon and 1.5 acres of Cabernet Franc, composed predominantly of volcanic soils with healthy drainage. It achieved global fame when the 1973 S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon triumphed over Bordeaux’s First- and Second-Growth Châteaux at the 1976 Judgment of Paris. For the 2023 bottling, the primary blocks were 2A, 3A, 1A, 1B, and Block 4 — the “grande dame” of the vineyard, planted in 1972. These vines, along with blocks on the volcanic eastern side of S.L.V., give the wine its structure, minerality, concentrated dark fruit, and ripe, elegant tannins.

The 2023 vintage marks the 50th anniversary of S.L.V. winning the historic Judgment of Paris blind tasting — and coincidentally, 2023 ended up being similar in character to the winning 1973 vintage. Winter brought ample rainfall that filled reservoirs and enriched soils with lasting saturation. Cool conditions led to a later-than-average bud break in mid-April, with continued cold weather throughout bloom. Summer was classic for Napa Valley, with cool sea breezes all season long resulting in a slow and even ripening period. Winemaker Marcus Notaro has called 2023 potentially the vintage of the decade — one of the coolest growing seasons Napa Valley has seen in ten years, yielding wines with vibrant acidity, rich flavorful structures, and lengthy tannins.

The wine leads with dark fruit aromas on the nose intertwined with cocoa, baking spices, cassis, and subtle cedar spice. The palate is rich and firmly structured, revealing gravelly and iron-tinged mineral nuances, with dark chocolate emerging toward the end and carrying through a persistent, well-structured finish. James Suckling awarded 98 points, noting the wine is “so fragrant in pine needles, spearmint and blackcurrant aromas, then layers of violet, cocoa, cedar and bay laurel flavors wrapped in snug tannins,” calling it fresh, firm, and well-balanced with many years of enjoyment ahead. Wine Advocate awarded 97 points, describing it as loaded with generous notes of mixed red and black cherries, expansive on the palate without seeming heavy, with a luscious finish that unspools in long, savory waves of mocha, earth, and black olives.